The Boy On Fire (A Caleo Short Story)
by jacksones8864
Summary: This story takes place after the events of The Blood of Olympus and The Trials of Apollo never happened. Leo returns with Calypso but faces a new problem that not even machines could possibly fix. Reviews are appreciated. [Completed]
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Leo could feel Calypso's warm hands against his waist as they flew through the cold air, leaving Ogygia as a speck in the distance. He felt as if he was on top of the world. The quest was over, the Great Prophesy completed. Leo had nothing else to do, he could do as he pleased, go where he pleased, and especially be with who he pleased.

He felt Calypso's arms grip tighter around his waist as he flew faster, gaining altitude. Festus's gears whirred and clicked as they flew. They broke through a layer of clouds and could see for miles around. Festus slowed down to almost a hover and let them enjoy the view.

"I've never been this high before." Leo turned around and saw that Calypso was looking around at everything. She had awe plastered on her milky white face that seemed to glow in the direct sunlight. Leo would never get tired of looking at her. She seemed so... _pure_ up here, away from everything, with just the two of them.

"Trust me, it gets better." Leo grinned. "Hyyaah!" He kicked Festus's sides with the side of his feet, like a cowboy would do on a horse.

Festus shot forwards, darting through the clouds at an extreme rate, leaving contrails behind him. They went up and down, left and right. Leo screaming, "YEAH, BABY! HOW DO YOU LIKE THIS!" while Calypso was squealing from joy behind him, her arms so tightly wrapped around his waist, her head was almost resting on his shoulder. Then Festus had his own ideas. He swung around suddenly, almost throwing Leo and Calypso off his back, and darted back into a cloud, collecting little bits of cloud on his wings and talons. He shot out again and flew through the clear open air above the clouds, throwing the clouds this way and that, then flew back a bit to admire his work. It was a heart, made from cloud.

Leo heard Calypso sigh against his back and he turned around. Calypso quickly wrapped her arms around him in a quick hug, but that hug soon became a kiss. Leo felt wires popping and gears spinning inside of his head. He really had to get used to this kissing regularly thing, because every time Calypso kissed him, he felt like his brain was a computer that just got rebooted. When Calypso pulled back out of the kiss, Leo hoped he wasn't as red as he felt. He turned back around and pat his dragon on the neck. "Thanks, buddy." he whispered so that only Festus could hear. The dragon responded with a few quiet whirs and pops from his mouth. Then they started to fly forwards again at a swift pace.

Ahead of them Leo noticed that the clouds took on a dark tinge, and when they arrived there, he realized that the the clouds were spinning slowly underneath them. They had arrived in a storm, which was right in the direction that they had to go. They would have to fly through it. Apparently Calypso's curse wouldn't let them go so easily after all. Calypso had told him back on the island that to leave Ogygia, you had to think of where he wanted to go, so he thought of his newest home, Camp Half-Blood.

"Hold on, Sunshine! Things are about to get rough!" He yelled into the wind. He felt Calypso tighten her grip on his waist. Wind buffeted them as they flew and Festus was having trouble staying aloft. Then it started to rain. Leo felt like nothing was going his way today. Except that he had defeated a primordial goddess, cheated death, and returned to a place that was impossible to find twice. But whatever. None of that would matter if he couldn't get a slightly annoying in an endearing way but extremely beautiful goddess out of this storm alive.

Festus dove in different directions, trying to find a pocket of air in this fierce gale. He wasn't succeeding. Festus was getting knocked back and forth by the wind. Just as Leo thought that this couldn't get much worse, it began to hail. Stupid curse, or at least Leo assumed that this storm was being caused by the curse. It just wouldn't let them go on without trouble. They continued forward. Leo wasn't sure if they had escaped the Ogygia border and came back into the world yet, but if they hadn't, he sure felt that they might never. The storm was getting awfully intense. If the great Bad Boy Supreme was taken down by a measly storm, then he would be very unhappy... and dead. That wouldn't happen though, would it? Let's not jinx it.

Zipping through the black storm clouds, Festus started to creak and his wings were starting to smoke from battling the gale. Leo worried that they would catch fire from overuse. Not for his sake of course, but for the beautiful girl behind him. He still couldn't get over the fact that a girl like _her_ would go for a guy like _him_. He wasn't anyone. She could have anyone. But he guessed he was the only one who actually succeeded in returning to that accursed island to get Calypso back. That tended to get cute girl's attention. Odysseus had helped him of course. He had build the astrolabe that got Leo here. Leo just needed to get a crystal from Calypso's cave, which he had done during his first visit.

The wind was definitely picking up. The black clouds surrounded them on all sides, swirling. Festus was barely holding it together.

"Come on, buddy. You can do this." He told his dragon, but he couldn't even hear himself over the roaring of the storm. To Leo's dismay, he noticed a hurricane starting to form ahead, but it was too late to turn to the side. They were caught in the spinning hurricane. Their lives couldn't be over this early! They had so much ahead! Most of all, Calypso had just had a chance of escape and it would just lead to her death!

Suddenly, Festus was knocked aside by the wind and both Leo and Calypso flew of his back. Leo was surprised that they had even stayed on as long as they had, judging that the storm was so intense that in had formed a hurricane. Leo's first thoughts went out to Calypso. _Don't die! You can't! I just almost saved you!_ She was above him. Her caramel hair was flying all over and around her fear-stricken beautiful face. _Please gods, at least spare her._ In a flash Festus was there, grabbing Calypso in his bronze talons, before disappearing back into the storm once again. _Thank gods, at least she'll be safe. Festus will save her,_ Leo thought as he blacked out, the roaring of the storm blasting through his head and him falling towards the raging ocean below.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Being a demigod sucked. Even Leo had to admit that the monster fighting parts were kind of cool, but those don't nearly make up for getting beat up by a storm and dying twice in one day. But the worst parts are the dreams. Almost every single night godly beings are constantly talking to you as you sleep. Half the time it's a bad guy and you end up waking up in cold sweat, which doesn't contribute much for a well-earned good night's sleep. And because there was nothing else to do while you are knocked out and falling towards a raging ocean, Leo dreamed.

At first there was just static. Then an black and white image appeared. It was a face, disfigured and covered in soot, like it had been dragged across a dirty road. It had a huge scraggly beard that flew out of the face in all directions. The figure that the face belonged to was bent over a pair of antennae, twisting it this way and that. He was dressed in brown ripped-up overalls with a black undershirt. The man stood in a room surrounded in tables, covered in mounds of blueprints, bits and pieces of different kinds of metals, and half finished creations.

"Hey, dad."

The man spun around and spoke in a gruff voice. "I apologize for the reception, my boy. It's always hard to get a decent signal from Mount St. Helens. How do you like my new hat?" He gave the antennae one last twist, then held up a bronze helmet. It had lightning bolts sticking up where your ears would go. Zipping between the ends of each bolt was raw electricity. Leo could even hear the electricity popping.

"What does it do? I mean, it does do something right?" Leo couldn't help being curious about his father's newest invention.

"Of course it does something!" Hephaestus almost roared. "It protects your head!" As if to prove his point, he put it on his head. It barely fit. After a few moments of Hephaestus's triumphant look, he started to shake. It started slow but soon grew into a violent spasm. Leo saw Hephaestus fall to the ground, electricity sparks shooting up across his body.

"DAD! WHAT THE HECK!" Leo yelled in surprise. He had no idea what was going on. It could have been one of Hephaestus's tricks gone wrong. But whatever it was, Leo couldn't stop it, of course. He was only in a dream, so he couldn't interact with anything, even if this really was happening across the world. Or maybe across the universe. Leo guessed he would never know if he actually made it out of Ogygia with Calypso. _Festus has the astrolabe. He'll protect her._

As suddenly as the spasm had began, it ended. The electricity that had been sparking between the lightning bolts had fizzled out. Hephaestus groaned from the floor. He threw off the helmet and it skid across the rock floor.

"Umm... you okay?" Leo asked.

"Don't worry about it." Hephaestus stood up. His already crazy hair was now standing up in all different directions, making it even crazier than before. "Just a harmless malfunction."

"Harmless... That's exactly the word I would have picked." Leo remarked sarcastically.

"I'm glad you understand. Now the real reason that a brought you here was not to show you my hat, but something much more important, although it is hard to beat my hat."

"Yeah. Of course! You got the best hat! That hat is my bae!" Leo didn't want to insult his own dad. "But, seriously. Why am I here? I've got other things to be doing."

"By other things do you mean falling into the ocean and dying?"

"No! By other things I mean saving myself from falling into the ocean and dying! Which I should be doing right now! Get on with it pops!"

"Fine, you're no fun. Don't worry about your fall. This dream will only pass in a second. You will awaken in almost the exact spot that you fell asleep. Anyway, machines always make friendlier conversations than humans. Godly parental advice to tell your future kids: Always prefer a machine to a human. They're easier to interact with. They don't bombard you with questions that you do not want to answer."

"You're avoiding the question."

"Yes, I am. For good reason too."

"Can you answer it? Please?" Leo flashed a fake smile that he hoped looked more charming than he felt.

"I guess I will have to. So, Zeus has invited you to join us in the weekly council of the gods. Next meeting. Saturday."

"Why?"

"You will find out when you arrive. But for now, I have business to attend to." Hephaestus picked up his lightning hat from where it had skid.

"Why can't you tell me now, pops." Leo asked nicely.

"Because this dream has already taken too long. Bye now! Go have fun falling!"

And with that, Hephaestus snapped his fingers and the dream started to fade slowly. Leo tried to yell but the audio in the dream had stopped working. Hephaestus waved one last time and Leo's vision went black.

Leo woke up falling. Hephaestus was right. He was pretty much in the general location of when he fell asleep, but instead of a storm, there was a clear sky with sunlight shining down onto the earth.

As Leo fell, he screamed. He had no idea how to save himself. He didn't even have his sphere that semi-safely landed him on Ogygia the first time he visited. It was safely tucked inside of one of Festus's many compartments. Leo wished he had it now. It would definitely make surviving a whole lot easier. At least he didn't have to worry about Calypso. Festus had her. She would be alright.

 _Enough thinking. Time to save myself!_ He thought, although he had no idea how. He flipped over into a diving position, so that he could try diving into the water to prevent full-body contact and his imminent death, although he doubted it would work. _Well, I guess this is the end. Bye Calypso. I love you._ And with that thought, he plunged towards the sea, which was only about a hundred feet below him.

Just as he was about to hit the water, he stopped. Yep, he just stopped, hovering right above the water.

"What the heck?" he asked himself. He glanced upwards. There was Festus. Festus was dangling Leo by his feet in the his bronze talons. "Just in time, as always, ol' boy." He smiled. Gears spun in Festus's mouth, making a whirring noise. "Yeah, It's good to see you too, buddy. Anyway, where's Calypso?" Festus couldn't have saved her just to drop her!

"I'm right here." Calypso was sitting on Festus's back. Festus pulled Leo upwards onto his back. Leo looked Calypso in the eye.

"Hey, babe." That made Calypso smile.

"Anyway, where are we?" she replied.

"Good question." Leo looked around they seemed to still be over the ocean. He turned around. There was an island. It was too long to be Calypso's. Leo could see some buildings on the island. It looked like...

"Wait... I can't believe it!"

"Can't believe what?" Calypso looked confused. Leo stood up and full-contact tackled her, kissing her with as much force as he could muster. He didn't know what had come over him. He supposed that he was just too happy. When he broke away, Calypso looked flabbergasted. Leo sat back up and pointed towards the island in the distance with a huge smile on his face.

"Look... Look! Festus, fly towards that island!" Leo could barely contain his excitement.

There it was. Leo's newest home. Camp Half-Blood.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Leo could barely contain his excitement. He was going home. Camp Half-Blood, the only place he was accepted. Even his own relatives hated him. Leo could still remember Aunt Rosa's voice, yelling about how he was a 'diablo' and a disgrace to the Valdez family line. Dang, he hated that woman. But now he was flying to his real home. Not back to Texas, where his relatives lived. And that accursed machine shop was there in Texas too. The first place Leo had met the goddess Gaia. The place his mother, Esperanza Valdez, had breathed her final breath. Leo missed his mom to death. She was perfect in every way. His mother was awesome, she stayed happy even when she had to work all through the night, and she could fix anything mechanical.

"Leo, we're almost there." Calypso was right. They were approaching Long Island Sound, Leo could see the fireworks beach, where every 4th of July they would launch magical fireworks into the sky. The fireworks would explode into all kinds of shapes, stars, lightning bolts, satyr's heads. Leo's personal favorite was the chili pepper, because after it lit up it would make a massive explosion that would turn the whole sky red.

"Festus, start to go down." The dragon lowered his altitude to prepare for landing. They were right above Camp Half-Blood and Leo could see small specks of people staring up at them. He couldn't recognize anyone from this high up, but he felt sure his friends were down there waiting for him. It was then that Leo realized that he had no idea how long he'd been gone. Festus might have been searching for Ogygia with his corpse on his back for years! Scratch that. Festus's fuel reserves could only last for a few months or so straight, so it had to be a few months or less. But still, lots could happen in just a few months. Some other super powerful godly being could have killed all of his friends. Actually, let's not think about that.

Festus circled lower. Leo could finally see the faces of the people below. He scanned the crowd, looking for one of his friends. He saw the Stoll brothers staring up in amazement at the bronze dragon slowly descending upon them. Leo continued looking. Suddenly there he was. The one he was most hoping to see. Jason was standing over by the edge of the forest, next to the ring of cabins, with a massive smile on his face. Piper was right next to Jason, tears streaming down her face as she stared at him. He hoped it was from joy and not from disgust at the thought of him coming back.

Leo couldn't help it. He stood up on Festus's back and yelled down at the crowd. "THOUGHT YOU COULD GET RID OF ME THAT EASILY! I'M BACK, BABY! WOOOOOO!"

The crowd cheered as Festus landed on the grass. Leo slipped off his dragon's back and onto the ground. He then turned around and helped Calypso down. The crowd went silent as he looked around at them. They stared back at him. Just then Piper broke through the circle of dumbfounded campers and tackled Leo to the ground, hugging him tightly, her tears flowing down her face onto his shirt.

"Leo..." She choked up.

"Heya, Pipes. How's life?"

They stood back up, but Piper was still clinging to Leo, her tears still streamed down her face.

"Pipes, I think that's enough. Other people want a turn!" Leo glanced over Piper's shoulder and saw Jason, still with a huge grin on his face.

"Hey, Jason? Little help?"

His grin grew even larger. "Come on Pipes, he's right. We should give him some space. Who's the lady?" Jason motioned to Calypso. Piper followed his gaze and did a double-take as if just realizing that Calypso was there.

"Hi." Calypso waved shyly. "My name is Calypso."

Jason and Piper, along with all the other campers in the crowd, just stared.

Leo broke the silence. "Umm... This is awkward."

Jason was the next one to speak. He turned to face Leo. "You mean this is _the_ Calypso? The one you and Percy met on that island?"

Leo was about to answer but Calypso interrupted before he could. "You know Percy?"

"Yeah, I know Percy. He's here at camp."

"Percy is _here?_ Where?

"Umm... I think he's at his cabin or something..."

"No, I'm right here. What's all this commotion about?" They all turned around to see Percy looking at them in surprise. "Leo! You're back! Welcome home man! Who's that... ohh." He had noticed Calypso, who was looking at him with a strange expression on her face. It was a mixture of fear and anger, but also some happiness and excitement. Leo had no idea how she could feel that many emotions at once.

"Percy."

"Calypso, I'm so sorry. I thought the gods would keep their promise. I didn't think to check if they..."

"Don't apologize. It all turned out okay in the end, right?"

"I guess... But still..."

"Don't worry. I'm fine with how it turned out." She walked up to Percy and gave him a hug. He looked flustered at first but then hugged her back.

Leo interrupted the moment. "Well, I guess now that that's settled, I can finally show you around camp. Right, Cally?

"Cally?" Both Percy and Calypso said at the same time.

"What! Everyone's got to have a nickname! What do you have against Cally? It's cute!" Leo put out his hand to Calypso and she took it. "Come on Cally, there's so much I need to show you!"

Leo started to walk away, but before even taking his third step, he turned back around. "Almost forgot! Where are Levesque and Zhang? I want to talk to them."

"Oh, there not here. They're over at Camp Jupiter, doing roman stuff. I can Iris Message them later if you want me to." Jason replied.

"Sure! That would be awesome! Just come get me when they're ready. I'll be at Bunker 9 with Cally." He turned back to Calypso and resumed walking, still holding her hand. "Let's go, Calypso. You'll love Bunker 9."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

As Leo and Calypso with Festus creaking along behind them walked towards the forest, where Bunker 9 was waiting, Calypso had a question.

"What is this place?"

Calypso was asking about Camp Half-Blood. Leo couldn't blame her. She had basically been pulled from something like 3000 BC to the present.

"Well, it's a camp."

"I know that much."

"Basically, well, I haven't been here that long so if I get any details wrong, it's not my fault."

"Okay. Go on."

"It's a camp where Demigods go to train and be safe."

"Train for what?"

"Fighting monsters mostly, but we also do stuff like canoeing, forging, and capture-the-flag."

"What's capture-the-flag?"

"It's a game we play in the woods. There are two teams. Each team has a flag and they try to protect the other team from getting it to their side of the forest, also while trying to get the other team's flag to their side of the forest. It helps us with combat practice and strategy."

"Sound fun."

At first Leo thought that she was being sarcastic. Why would a girl like her want to go out into the dirty woods in full battle armor and hit other people on the head with swords? But then he realized that she had a completely serious expression. He guessed there was still a lot that he didn't know about his girl.

They were passing by the Big House when Leo decided to stop and tell Chiron that he was back and introduce him to Calypso. _Chiron should know. He_ is _the head of camp._ Leo thought to himself.

"Calypso, I need to stop here for a sec, okay?"

"Sure, Leo."

"Festus, stay here. I'll be right back out."

They walked up the steps to the Big House and knocked on the door.

They heard a voice inside. "Come in!"

Leo opened the door and they walked down the hallway, leading towards the living room. Chiron was in wheelchair mode, reading a book. Leo noticed that Calypso was staring at Chiron with scrunched-up eyes, he had no idea why. Maybe she thought that he looked like someone that she knew or something.

"Hi, Chiron." Leo said, and then he noticed Calypso's eyes grow wide. _What's up with her._ Leo thought.

Chiron looked up. "Hello Leo, hello Calypso." He smiled.

"Chiron?" Calypso looked on the verge of tears. "It's really you, isn't it."

"Yes, child. It is I." He replied.

"Chiron!" Calypso ran up and Chiron took her in his arms.

"Welcome back to the real world, Calypso."

Leo spoke up. "I honestly have no idea what's going on. Someone please tell me."

Just then Dionysus strut into the room. "Who are these losers?" He asked Chiron in a bored, tired voice.

Leo answered instead, mostly because Chiron and Calypso were busy doing a lot of hugging, chatting, and explaining. "Uhh... hi, Mr. D! I'm Leo, remember me?"

"You're Theo! Of course I remember you! I'm a god, I never forget stuff!"

"Yeah..."

"The pretty girl is Catherine right?"

"Calypso."

"Precisely what I just said. Stop repeating me. I remember her from that island that we banished her to. I remember because that's the day Hermes lost that bet to me about that nymph girl. He had to go ask Athena out! It was hilarious! She said no of course, being a maiden goddess."

"Ok... Why exactly did we need to know that, may I ask?"

"No, you may not ask."

"Oh, okay then." Leo turned to go back to his conversation with Chiron but then remembered something. "Mr. D?"

"What now?"

"I was just wondering if, you know, Calypso lost her immortality when she left the island. So she won't live forever and whatnot."

"It's obvious isn't it? She wouldn't lose her immortality, of course. She's the daughter of an immortal Titan after all!"

Just those few words hit Leo like a rocket ship going full speed into space. "But Demigods are the children of immortal gods and were not immortal!"

"That's different. Well, I got to go do important stuff that none of you would understand." With that sour note, Dionysus turned around, grabbed a bottle of diet coke from the icebox on the table, and walked right back out the door.

Leo thought about what Dionysus just said. He wouldn't get to age with Calypso. They would never get to be an old, happy couple. They could only be a happy couple with one old guy and one young beautiful immortal girl. How would their relationship even work now that Leo had found this out? He would always know that Calypso would be as young and healthy as she is now, even in the future when she stands in front of Leo's grave. He almost cried at the thought, but he managed to keep himself together. _I'll tell her the next time were alone._ He planned. _I can't tell her now in front of Chiron. That would just embarrass her. Plus it would ruin their happy I-haven't-seen-you-in-3000-years reunion._

Leo walked up to Chiron and Calypso, who were still chatting. Leo noticed that Calypso's beautiful almond eyes were red from crying.

"Umm... You okay, Calypso?"

"Better than okay! This is the happiest that I've ever felt in my life! You should have told me that Chiron was here!"

"I didn't know that you guys know each other."

"Of course we know each other! You see Chiron was there when I was first banished to Ogygia after the First Titan War. He taught me how I would survive on that deserted island. He taught me how to plant crops, how to built a shelter. I owe him my life."

"Oh. I didn't know that. I'm glad you guys could meet back up." Leo then turned to Chiron. "I have a question."

"Yes, child? I'm ready." Chiron answered.

"Well, while I was falling out of that hurricane-"

"What hurricane? The weather is always clear here."

"Doesn't matter. Anyway, while I was falling out of that hurricane, I had a dream. My dad, Hephaestus, was there talking to me. He said that I had been summoned to come to the next Weekly Council of The Gods, or whatever that is, next Saturday." Leo recounted his dream to Chiron.

"Oh, yes! The WCOTG. That is a big honor. You better prepare."

"But what is it?"

"Every Saturday, all of the major gods, including Hades, hold a council at Olympus to talk about important stuff that has happened and to make decisions."

"What important stuff? And why was I invited to come?"

"It varies from council to council what they discuss, but if they invited you, it is important that you arrive. My guess is that it will probably be something about the recently-ended Second Giant War."

"Thanks Chiron. I think that's all I need. See you later!" Leo turned back to Calypso and reached out his hand for her to take it. "Ready to see my Bunker?"

"Yes, of course." Calypso gave Chiron one last hug and took Leo's hand and together they walked back out of The Big House and into the sunshine of Camp Half-Blood, where Festus was waiting patiently.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Bunker 9 was just as Leo had left it. Wires covered the floor and hung from the ceiling, leading off into mysterious motors and generators. Almost every square inch of wall space was covered in blueprints. Large circular corridors ran out of the main room in random directions. It was just how Leo loved it, complete insanity. _Ahh, it's good to be back._

Apparently Festus thought that too, because he walked right over to his pad in the center of the room and lay himself down, keeping one eye open. He couldn't sleep anymore because Piper had permanently woken him up, but Leo guessed that Festus still found his pad comfortable.

"So what do you think?" Leo asked Calypso as she stared at everything around her.

After some pondering she spoke. "I think it needs to be redone."

"What do you mean?" Leo was confused. Did she not like it? He thought she would love Bunker 9!

"Look over there." Calypso pointed to a corner of the room that was filled with crates. "Can't you just see a worktable over there? And over there can't you see buckets of sorted tools just ready to be used?"

The funny thing was, Leo _could_ see all of that. He could imagine crates of sorted tools, brand new worktables instead of the almost one-hundred year old ones that he used now, and maybe even a few conveyor belts with fancy machine parts spilling out of them. Maybe Bunker 9 did need a makeover.

"Yeah, I think your right, Calypso. This place is kind of a dump."

"Don't think of it like that. Think of it as an opportunity to make something amazing even better!" Calypso turned to him with a beautiful smile that lit up her entire face.

"So you do think it's amazing?"

"Of course I do, Leo! It is amazing!" Calypso walked over to Leo and hugged him.

Leo felt warmth travel up his spine and into his heart from where Calypso was touching him. The hug ended too quickly though and Calypso started to pace around the room, muttering about different things that she could do to improve the bunker. Leo followed her.

"We could have a small kitchen over there by the windows to prepare food if were hungry."

"Yeah! And we could put in a mini fridge to store snacks and soda!"

"A mini fridge?"

Leo scolded himself. He was always forgetting that Calypso wasn't up to date on all of the technological advances of the twenty-first century, or even the first century.

"It's like a box that keeps stuff cold so that it won't spoil as fast."

"Oh! That's smart. So it's like a Greek icehouse?"

"Yeah, I guess. But it's a lot smaller and more compact."

"Perfect! Now what kind of flowers would match this mechanical theme..."

As Calypso walked around the room, brainstorming ideas, Leo thought. _I should really tell her that she's immortal. I don't want to keep it from her. It's not like if I don't tell her, it won't be true._

"Hey, Calypso?" It was now or never.

"Yes, Leo?" She stopped her planning and turned to look at him.

"Umm... I want to show you my personal room! With all of my newest prototypes!" _Ugh, come on, self. You really should have told her._ But he just couldn't bring himself to do it. The look on her face alone would destroy him. He could imagine all of the sadness in those dark almond eyes looking at him on the verge of tears. _Stop it, Leo._ He chided himself. _Stop thinking like that! You have to go show her your room now!"_

Leo forced a smile. "Come on, Sunshine. It's just through this tunnel." Calypso followed behind him as they walked.

They passed several other rooms before getting to Leo's room. He had only explored about half of them and was anxious to explore the rest, but that was a job for another day.

Leo's room was smallish, with a few desks and a bed if he was working late and was too tired to walk back to his cabin, or if he just wanted to sleep alone instead of in the same room as all of his siblings. The desks were covered in miscellaneous machine parts and blueprints. He had his favorite blueprint, the one for the Argo II on the wall right above the main desk with his drawing of the flying ship from his dream next to it.

Calypso broke the silence. "Well isn't this just a comfy little workplace."

"It seems a lot more crowded with the two of us. You're the first person I've ever shown this place to." Leo walked up to Calypso and put his hands on her waist.

"Oh, really?" Calypso smiled and leaned into Leo. They kissed for what seemed like forever. Leo's heart was flipping in his chest and he pushed Calypso onto the bed, landing on top of her.

They broke apart for just enough time for Calypso to giggle and then flip herself on top of Leo. She sat on his stomach and began to unbutton his shirt.

 _CRASH!_

The sound of machinery falling off tables onto the floor rang from the main room. Leo hastily jumped up off the bed, rebuttoned his shirt, and ran out of the room, Calypso following suit. _Who could possibly need us now?_ Leo thought to himself as he ran through the long metal tunnel. Probably some kind of thieving monster from the woods that happened to stumble into the bunker.

As they got closer to the main room, Leo began to hear a voice shouting. It sounded human, but that didn't mean much since Cyclopes could disguise their voice to sound like anyone. Leo had learned that from a fight with Cyclopes with Jason and Piper a few months ago, an experience he really never wanted to repeat.

When Leo and Calypso arrived in the main room, Leo was surprised by what they saw. It was no monster, but Nico DiAngelo hanging by his feet, which were in Festus's mouth. Nico was cursing like a sailor and trying to tell the dragon to put him down. Leo was staring and trying not to laugh.

Finally Nico noticed Leo and Calypso standing underneath him. "Gods, Leo! Tell your accursed dragon to put me down! It just attacked me as I came in!"

Leo swallowed his laughter. "Festus, put Nico down right now."

Festus cocked his head to one side, his innocent-looking eyes glowing as he held the son of Hades in his mouth.

Nico was still shouting. "Hurry up down there!"

"Yeah, yeah, don't get your ghouls in a fix." Leo shouted back. "Festus, drop him!"

Festus made some clicking noises out of the corner of his mouth that sounded a lot like complaining.

"I don't care if he was trespassing. I don't care if you decided to keep him hostage until I came back! Put Nico down!"

Festus obeyed, but he still had a mischievous look in his eyes. Nico was lowered to the ground and landed in a heap on the floor. He quickly got back up to his feet. Honestly, Leo had to admit that the son of Hades kind of freaked him out a bit. He was just so powerful. Too powerful. Leo guessed even more so than Jason and maybe even Percy.

Nico looked Leo in the eye. "You really need to keep control of your pet."

Festus made a loud creak from his mouth at that last word.

Leo continued talking. "One, he's not my pet, he's my friend. Two, is that really what you came to tell me?"

"No!" Nico's expression displayed surprise and even a little hurt. "Jason sent me to tell you that he Iris messaged Frank and my sister so that you could talk to them!"

"Oh." Leo felt slightly guilty for yelling at Nico. Nico really had been doing him a favor. "Okay. I'll be there in a sec. You go ahead, we'll catch up. Thanks!"

"Umm... No problem, I guess. See you later." Nico turned around and walked back out of Bunker 9 into the woods. It was starting to get into the afternoon. Leo guessed around four o'clock from the shade of the light outside.

Leo glanced back at Calypso. "Now, where were we?"

She smiled.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Half an hour later, Leo and Calypso walked back out of Bunker 9 and into the woods. Leo held up a picture that Calypso had just drawn. It was a schematic for Calypso's improved Bunker 9. She had drawn it from birds-eye-view and had labeled every little thing, from where the mini fridge would go to what types of flowers would go on the windowsill. It was awesome. Leo could just imagine turning Bunker 9 into their own personal house. Festus would still live there, of course, his pad was bolted to the ground, but there was still plenty of space for a proper living area.

Thinking about that spawned a question in Leo's mind. "Hey, Calypso? When are you planning for us to get started on the remodeling?"

She pondered the question. "I think once I get used to being here and when everyone else gets used to me being here too. Then I won't seem like such an outcast."

"Nobody thinks your an outcast!"

"Have you seen the way people look at me as I walk by? They look like they're surprised that I'm still here."

"Well, that's their own problem for not accepting strangers. You will always have a home here."

She smiled. "Thank you, Leo, but I have another question."

"What's that, Sunshine?"

"How am I possibly supposed to remember everyone's names! There are so many people here, more than I have ever seen in one place at once, I think. I guess I'm just so used to living on my own."

"Even I, the great Leo Valdez, don't remember even half the people here's names! I think you'll fit right in." Leo laughed, then looked around. They had arrived in the circle of cabins, with Zeus's cabin right in front of them. "It looks like we're here!" He began to walk inside.

"Wait, Leo?"

"Yeah, darling?" Leo stopped walking and turned around to face Calypso, who was looking at all of the cabins around her.

"Why are there so many cabins? You told me that each one stood for an Olympian god, but there are only twelve of them and like thirty cabins."

"Well, long story short," Leo didn't want to get into all of the details of the god's promise to Percy after the last Titan War, "we have cabins for all of the minor gods as well."

"But their are hundreds of minor gods! Do you have even more cabins somewhere?"

"We only have cabins for the major minor gods." Leo then realized what he just said. "I mean, the ones who actually have kids with mortals, like Hebe, Hypnos, or Nemesis."

"Oh. That makes sense."

"Shall we go in now?" Leo asked politely.

"Sure."

They walked into the Zeus cabin. There weren't many bunks, because Zeus didn't have very many children or Hera would get _very_ mad. Their was a statue of Zeus in one corner that seemed to be staring down on them all like: _If you cross me, I will smite you!_ Very intimidating.

Jason and Annabeth were kneeling in front of a little fountain that was spraying mist into the air, a perfect device for Iris Messaging, trying to get a connection so that they could talk to Frank and Hazel.

Annabeth noticed Leo and Calypso first and smiled. "Hi, Leo. I heard you were back! And you must be Calypso. Percy told me a lot about you."

Leo didn't know how this part of the reunion was going to go, whether Annabeth would be mad at Calypso or maybe Calypso would get angry at Annabeth for stealing Percy from her or something, but Annabeth was smiling at Calypso in a friendly way, so Leo assumed that it would be all right.

"You're Annabeth, right? Percy spoke to me about you a lot too. He really likes you." Calypso's face showed no emotion. Maybe this would be a bit more awkward than Leo had imagined it.

"Yes, I'm Annabeth..." Her smile faded, as if she wasn't sure what Calypso would do next and was trying to figure her out.

"Hey, guys? Hazel and Frank are on." Jason broke the awkward silence between Annabeth and Calypso.

 _Thank the gods! That would have ended badly._ Leo thought as he walked over to the fountain. "Hi Hazel. Hey Zhang. What's up?" He smiled at the faces of his friends. They were awestruck.

Hazel finally managed to speak. "We... We heard that you were back but..." She stuttered.

Frank finished for her. "We didn't know what to think! I mean, you were dead! Nico said that he felt you passing into the underworld!"

"Well, I'm back. The physician's cure worked. And I got Calypso here with me!" Leo added, then called to Calypso. "Come here, Sunshine. My roman buddies want to see you!"

Calypso walked over and sat down next to Leo, in front of the mist image. "Hi."

"Oh my gods, Leo. She looks just like that picture I drew you!"

"What picture?" Calypso looked confused.

Leo didn't know how to say it without it being super awkward. "Umm... Well... I kinda was heartsick for you back while we were still on our quest, so I had Hazel draw me a picture of your face." _Wow, that came out weird._ Leo thought.

"Aww... That's so sweet! I love you, Leo!" She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him full on the lips. It was the first time they had kissed in public and Leo was feeling insecure, despite all of the times that he had seen his friends kiss in public.

When they broke apart everyone there stared at them. Leo was still feeling very insecure, but then Jason started to clap. Everyone soon joined in and Leo's insecurity was washed away in a flood of happiness. He started to laugh and everyone joined in that too.

Everyone was still laughing and clapping when Chiron galloped into the cabin with a stern look on his face. "What's going on here!"

Both the clapping and laughing stopped. Leo was the first to answer Chiron's question. "Nothing, sir. We were just having some fun."

Chiron's face relaxed. "Oh, okay. I thought someone had smuggled baby Hellhounds into camp again. False alarm." Chiron then smiled. "But what I was really here to say is that we are going to have a special game of capture-the-flag tonight, just for Leo and Calypso's return! It starts after dinner." Chiron galloped back out of the cabin.

Just then the dinner horn sounded from the direction of the dining pavilion.

"Well, we got to go eat, then." Leo told Hazel and Frank. "See you soon!"

The Romans muttered a quick goodbye and severed the connection. Leo and his friends stood up off the floor and headed in the direction of the delicious smell of frying food.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

After eating a hearty salad drowned in ranch dressing, Chiron announced that it was time to prepare for capture-the-flag. "Campers!" He spoke to the crowd of demigods.

Nobody looked up. Everyone was too busy eating their meals and chatting to each other.

"Campers!" Chiron finally got their attention. "It is time to prepare for capture-the-flag!"

Shouts of "I thought that we already had one last Monday!" and "Two games in one week! Awesome!" rang out across the crowd.

"Campers, quiet! I'm not finished!" Chiron continued. "I know you may be confused about why we are having two games in one week, but I have decided that as a special treat we are going to have another game! But there is going to be something special about this game! Instead of cabins allying with each other, we will have two team captains that will chose campers for their team one by one. Since Leo and Calypso have just returned to us, I am going to make them captains! Heroes, to the woods!"

Whooping and cheering, the campers filtered out of the dining pavilion. Leo got up from where he was recounting his journey home from Ogygia to anyone who would listen, which right now was just Chuck Hedge, the two-month old baby satyr and Gleeson Hedge's son. Leo had talked with the coach earlier and Coach Hedge had told him that he was proud of him and that Leo was still and would always be his cupcake.

Chuck sucked on his thumb while Leo returned him to his daddy before running outside with the rest of the campers. He had no idea where Calypso was but he assumed that she would be somewhere out here. Some girls had pulled Calypso away from him at the beginning of the meal to chat and Leo had seen her switching tables a few times.

Leo noticed that Clarisse of the Ares cabin was walking up to him. "Valdez!"

"What do you want, Clarisse?" Leo meant it in a normal way, but he realized that it came out a bit too rude.

"Is that how you want to play then?" Clarisse's always present scowl grew darker.

"No, sorry." Leo tried again. "What do you need?"

"That's better. I was just wondering why Chiron put a little girlie as team captain instead of me."

"Don't underestimate her. I admit, she doesn't look like much, but she can do lots if she really wanted to." Leo thought for a second, then added. "And aren't you a little girlie too?"

Leo walked away smirking as Clarisse scowled at him, but she didn't have a comeback so she just walked back over to her group of Ares kids.

Just then Chiron called Leo to the front of the group. "Will our team captains please come forward."

Leo walked up to the front of the group and stood next to Chiron. He saw Calypso, beautiful as always, laughing with a bunch of Aphrodite girls as she came up to stand next to him. Leo noticed that the Aphrodite girls had really decked her out. She had colorful feathers in her hair and it looked like they had done something to her eyes, because their dark almond color shone with almost twice the effect. _Wow, she sure is beautiful._ Leo wasn't usually a big fan of makeup in the first place but these additions didn't change his girl, it only expressed the traits he loved about her even more.

Chiron interrupted his thinking. "Calypso, you choose first."

"Uhh... Leo."

Some short bursts of laughter began to appear throughout the crowd but they stopped when Leo flashed them a death-glare.

Chiron turned to Calypso. "Calypso, Leo is another team captain. You can pick anyone but him."

"Oh, okay." She seemed to stare blankly at the crowd, pondering for a second. She finally came to a conclusion. "Percy!"

Percy proceeded to walk up and stand next to Calypso.

It was Leo's turn. "Jason!" As Jason walked by, he shot Percy a look that said: _Let's see which one of us is more powerful now._

Calypso then picked Piper and Leo picked Annabeth.

It went on and on like that with new team members whispering suggestions into the team captain's ears which Leo found both annoying and helpful because he knew almost none of the campers nor their skills. The same was going on with Calypso.

A camper named Daniel whispered, "Choose Jackson, he's good." while Connor kept whispering, "Chose Travis! We're a package deal!"

Once the teams were assigned Chiron spoke. "Campers, you will have thirty minutes of free time to plan! That means no running across the boundaries!" Chiron spoke directly to the Ares kids, who just grumbled. Chiron continued as he handed one flag to each team. "Campers, the time starts now!"

With those last words, all of the campers ran into the woods. Leo's team ran towards Zeus's Fist, a big rock that jutted out of the ground.

"Jason!" Leo called to the son of Zeus. "Put the flag up there!"

Jason flew up to the top of Zeus's Fist and placed the flag between to rocks. "All set!"

Then Leo turned to Annabeth. "You got a plan?"

"Yeah, you stay here with Jason while I take the rest of the campers to set traps, then my group will scout from the trees on our side of the river and try and see what the other team is doing. At the end of the free time, we'll run in and try to quickly overwhelm the guards."

"Sounds like a plan to me." Leo agreed. "Go."

Annabeth and the rest of the demigods on Leo's team rushed out of the small clearing and into the woods.

Just then Leo had an idea. "Jason, how about you go fly up into one of those trees and hide, so that if people come, they will think that there is only one guard and rush in. Then you just jump them from behind or something."

"Sure, cap." Jason flew up into a tree and hid himself between the branches and leaves.

Leo then spoke to his magical tool belt that he wore pretty much everywhere. "Give me some wire and a lightning rod." His tool belt obeyed, except that the lightning rod was a bit small. Leo wasn't sure if it would work. But if it failed, no harm done. Hopefully.

Leo began to wrap a bit of the wire around the base of the lightning rod. After that was done, he lay the wire in a circle around Zeus's Fist.

Jason was watching curiously. "What are you doing?"

"When the enemy arrives, you blast lightning down onto this rod. The electricity will travel through the wire, paralyzing anyone who touches it."

"Oh, I see. Smart."

Half an hour passed by quickly. Leo began to hear shouts coming from the direction of the other team. He hoped Annabeth's plan would work. Suddenly Leo spotted Percy over by a tree in the distance, running swiftly towards them.

"Jason, quickly! Lightning!" Jason responded with a blast that shook the ground. The lightning rod shone with energy and began to glow but the sheer power of Jason's lightning was too much for it. It exploded, sending glowing shards of metal everywhere. "Jason, that was a bit too much."

"Sorry!"

The only good thing about the explosion was that Percy had been blown of his feet and was now too weak to get back up.

Just then Leo heard the sound of trampling feet behind him. He turned around. There was no one. _Hmm... I could have sworn!_ Leo then saw a girl shimmer into existence. It was Calypso, and she was holding the flag!

"Jason quickly!" Leo yelled at his best friend. "Calypso's invisible and she has the flag!" Leo knew Jason would be able to catch her faster because he could fly.

"What do you mean, Leo? The flag's right here!" Jason pointed at the top of Zeus's Fist, where the flag was waving in the wind.

 _I must be hallucinating! But it looked so real!_ Leo argued with himself, but before he could try and figure out what just happened, the answer came. Chiron galloped into the clearing.

"The game is won! Calypso's team is victorious!"

 _How?_ Leo turned around and glanced at the flag once more, but then it dissipated into green smoke before his very eyes. Leo couldn't believe it!

Chiron answered his unspoken question. "It seems that Calypso's magic was too much for your defensive strategy." He laughed.

"So it _was_ Calypso! I knew I wasn't seeing things!" Leo thought out loud as the three of them walked back to camp, dragging a still paralyzed Percy along behind them.

Later that night, after curfew, Leo and Calypso were just about to leave to their separate rooms in Bunker 9 when Leo stopped Calypso right in front of her door.

"Hey. I have to tell you something."

Calypso smiled. "Is it more nonsense about how you think we cheated in that game?"

"No. This is serious."

Leo's face must have looked deadly serious because Calypso lowered her smile. "What is it, Leo?"

"Well, I was talking to Dionysus while we were in the Big House earlier and he said that," Leo's voice cracked, "that you actually are immortal. I don't think our relationship will work under those circumstances."

Calypso put on a sad smile. "Leo, we'll make it work. Just you see. I will always love you."

And with that Calypso gave Leo a quick kiss and walked into her room, closing the door behind her.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Leo woke to the sound of someone pounding on the door of Bunker 9. _What do they want now?_ He thought as he groggily inched his way out of bed. Leo turned and looked at his alarm clock. It was only 6:30! Unfortunately it might be important. He passed by Calypso's door and could hear the sound of her snoring away in peace. At least _she_ could get her sleep. Just as he opened the door to Chiron, Leo realized that he was only wearing a t-shirt that was way too large and a pair of Batman themed boxer shorts. He turned red and hoped that Chiron wouldn't notice.

It seemed that Chiron apparently didn't notice, or just didn't care. "Leo, you should get ready. The council starts today at 10:00 and we want to be there on time as to not disrespect the gods."

Leo had completely forgotten about that! "Oh, yeah! I'll be ready. Let me go wake Calypso."

"I will wait for you at the Big House." Chiron replied but as he turned around to head back to the Big House to wait, he said, "Oh, and Batman is my favorite DC hero too."

Leo's face turned an even darker shade of red and he quickly closed the door and headed back to his room to change into something much more suitable for the Godly Council.

After Leo had dressed himself up in some slightly faded blue jeans and his favorite army jacket that Calypso had remade for him after the first one was burned up, he crept up to Calypso's door and knocked softly a few times but then stopped. Leo heard a noise coming from inside the room. It sounded like... Crying? Leo slowly and quietly opened the door and found Calypso sitting on the side of her bed, sobbing. Tears dripped from her eyes and landed with a _splash_ on the floor. She was dressed in a plain white t-shirt that went all the way down below her waist, covering up everything in that area.

As Leo entered the room, a lose board in the wooden floor creaked and Calypso looked up. Her eyes were red from crying. She didn't seem bothered that she was under dressed as Leo sat down on the bed next to her and draped his arm over her shoulders. "What's wrong, Calypso?" Leo put his hand to her face, wiping away a new tear.

"It's just that..." She choked up but still managed to continue. "Last night, when you told me those things about my immortality, well, I guess I didn't grasp the whole idea. I don't know what to do!" Calypso buried her face in Leo's shoulder and continued sobbing.

Leo supposed that it was his turn to comfort her. "Don't worry Calypso. Like you told me last night," Leo cleared his throat and quoted Calypso's exact words, "We'll make it work. Just you see. I will always love you."

Calypso put on a smile and wiped away the last of her tears. "Thank you for being here, Leo. I love you too." She kissed him on the lips and wiped away some of the tears that still lingered on her face.

"Well, now that we've cleared that up, Chiron just told me that I had to leave for that godly council thing soon. I told you about that, right?"

"Yes, you did, Leo. Yesterday."

"Good, well, I was wondering if you would like to come with me? To go see the gods?"

Calypso's smile grew even larger as the last of her tears dried away. "I would love that, Leo. Thank you."

"Well, you better get dressed then! We depart to the Big House in half-an-hour!"

Only twenty minutes later, they were ready. Leo had been working on a quick project in his room when he heard a knock on the door. He looked up. "Come in!"

Calypso entered. She was wearing a jacket over a simple white dress, like the kind she used to wear on Ogygia, and her hair was still wet from the shower that Leo had carefully explained to her how to operate. "Hi, Leo. I'm ready. What are you working on?"

Leo hid his creation behind his back and shot Calypso one of his trademark grins. "Oh, you know, the usual. Just a special little present I whipped up in my spare time for my special girl." He brought the present out from behind his back. It was a mechanical rose, colored gold and bronze, like the colors of the sunset. When Leo pressed a button on the base of the celestial bronze structure, the rose began to sway back and forth, as if caught in a gentle summer breeze.

"Oh, Leo! I love it! It reminds me of my garden back on Ogygia..." She sighed at the thought.

Leo handed her the rose and she put it in her pocket. Leo wasn't worried about it getting crushed. That was the beauty of metal flowers!

Leo and Calypso strolled down the corridor and passed Festus who was curled up on his platform, watching them leave with one eye open probably wondering where they were going this early in the morning, but he didn't say anything which Leo appreciated. He didn't feel like explaining anything right now.

Leo immediately regretted coming outside with only jeans to cover his legs. The early morning was beautiful in its own way. Little bits of dew were holding on to the ends of the grass, sparkling under the moon and the silence was rather romantic too, but it wasthe _cold_ that made Leo uncomfortable. Calypso probably didn't feel any better in that thin dress, but she didn't show it.

When they arrived at the Big House, Chiron was in his wheelchair mode and was waiting for them with mugs filled to the brim with hot chocolate. Several little marshmallows floated around in each cup. He handed them both a mug and motioned for them to sit down.

Chiron spoke. "So, Calypso is coming with you then?

Leo sipped his hot chocolate. "Yes. That's okay with you, right?

"Yes, of course. I was just wondering. Anyway, about the council. I have no sure idea of what they will discuss nor why they invited you, but like I said yesterday, I'm going to assume that it has something to do with our last war with the Giants. So, first things first, let's discuss the rules. Always be polite in front of the gods. Otherwise everything could end of not as much in your favor as it could have been. Secondly..."

It went on like this for what seemed like forever and by the end even Chiron looked a bit bored with himself. "And for rule number twenty-seven... Or was it twenty-eight? I don't know. Anyway-"

"Chiron, I think we got it." Leo interrupted. They had all finished their hot chocolate and Leo wanted to start the journey to Olympus.

Chiron seemed insulted by this comment but even he realized that he was going a little overboard in the rules department. He sighed. "I'm sorry, but it was just that the last time that I attended one of these councils, someone got decapitated."

"Say what?"

"Never mind. That was ages ago. Things were a bit more barbaric back then." Chiron turned to the clock. "Goodness! Look at the time!" The clock read 8:00. They had spent an entire hour discussing something that could have taken fifteen minutes! "Quickly, to the camp buses! Argus will drive us!"

Surprisingly enough, Leo had never actually been to the Empire State Building. He had been teleported up to Olympus by the gods before, but he had never actually been to the structure that fastened it to the earth. In Leo's opinion, it wasn't as regal and imposing as it was brought up to be. Sure, it was one of the tallest building in all of America but Leo could see a few spots just from glancing at it where it could have been improved.

After they entered the building and, after a lot of negotiation, got the special key card from the guy behind the desk, they were ready to enter Olympus. They accomplished the long elevator ride all the way up to the secret 600th floor while listening to excruciating elevator music. By the end of the ride, Leo literally thought that his head would explode, but finally it was over.

Olympus never ceased to amaze Leo. The towering archways, the flawless architecture, it was all so amazing, but the main attraction, of course, was the main throne room of the gods, where they were heading now. Chiron led Leo and Calypso up winding staircases, through alleyways, and across bridges that were suspended right over the bustling streets of Manhattan below.

The huge celestial bronze doors of the throne room were wide open, allowing access for many nymphs and minor gods who wanted to attend the council. Leo, Calypso, and Chiron stepped over the threshold and into the room, where they noticed that the Olympians were already deep in discussion.

"-when he arrives? Should we kill him?" Zeus was saying. Leo certainly hoped that they weren't talking about him.

Zeus turned to speak to another Olympian, but his gaze crossed over Leo and he stopped there instead. "Ah, Leo. We were just talking about you! And I see that you have brought Lady Calypso and Chiron with you!"

"Lord Zeus." Leo acknowledged the master of the house and bowed. He could sense that Chiron and Calypso were also bowing besides him.

After a quick second Leo rose again and looked over at Hephaestus, who was looking down on him with fiery pride gleaming in his eyes. "Hey dad."

"Hello son! I see you got my message!"

"Umm... Weren't you kinda there? Didn't you hear me talking back to you in that dream?" Leo was confused by his father sometimes.

"Of course!" Hephaestus was grinning at Leo, exposing all of his teeth.

Leo turned away from his father and back to Zeus. "So, umm... Why exactly did you invite me to this council?"

Zeus responded with a frown. "Ugh. I hate this part. It was bad enough that we had to do it to that Percy kid a few years back." Zeus seemed to be addressing no one in particular.

Poseidon, who was sitting next to Zeus, responded testily. "Hey, that's my son your talking about."

"Yes, of course. Sorry about that, brother." Zeus gave Poseidon a smile that told him that he wasn't really that sorry. Then Zeus turned back to Leo. "For your bravery during this last war against Gaea, we have decided to grant you one wish."

So Chiron was right. It was about the war with Gaea. And he got to have a wish! From the gods of all people! They could do almost anything, but could they fix Leo's problem with Calypso's immortality? Could they make her mortal? Or would she even want that? Too many questions!

Zeus continued. "Of course, you will probably ask for the same thing all of those other intelligent heroes requested."

Poseidon interrupted again. "Wait! Are you saying that my son is not intelligent!?

"Of course not! I was just merrily proposing that all of those other heroes were smart! Now please stop interrupting me!"

Poseidon looked like he was about to unleash another snappy comeback, but Leo interrupted first. "What did all of those other heroes ask for?"

Zeus's reply changed everything. "Immortality, of course! I could make you become immortal, like one of us! You could serve your father Hephaestus in the forges! Do you accept our most generous offer?"

Wait. Stop. Could that be the answer to all of Leo's problems? Would this be how he could be with Calypso forever? He had always assumed in the past that if they even fixed the problem they were having, it would involve Calypso becoming mortal! Not the other way around! Leo didn't know what to do. He was frozen in place, but he managed to turn his head towards Calypso. She had a massive smile on her face and Leo noticed a single tear of joy still resting on her eye. She knew that this was the answer too. Leo had made his decision and it was too late to back down now. He turned back to Zeus.

"Yes."


	9. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

Leo loved being a god. He could zip around as he pleased. He could randomly appear wherever he wanted. But most of all, he could be with who he loved.

After two long productive years of being a god, Leo and Calypso decided to set up the first Olympian restaurant/machine shop called Leo and Calypso's Garage: Auto Repair And Restaurant, or L&CG:AR&R for short. When asked why the name was so long, Leo simply responded that if the name was long and unusual, then it would stick in the minds of the customer, compelling them to come. Leo and Calypso would work together on the Auto Repair part of the job, but for the restaurant part, Leo would cook the food in his bare hands while Calypso would sing to the costumers for entertainment. The restaurant's number one most popular food was the tofu burgers.

After five long productive years of being a god, Leo and Calypso were married on Half-Blood Hill. Almost five-hundred people attended, including all the major gods and a lot of the minor ones too. Frank, Jason, Nico, and Percy were the groomsmen, while Annabeth, Hazel, Piper, and Reyna were the bridesmaids. Percy and Annabeth had gotten married almost three years back on this very spot and their daughter, Silena, was the flower girl. Annabeth was also pregnant with another child at the time, a boy that was to be named Charlie. Aphrodite was happy with how both 'stories' had turned out.

After seven long productive years of being a god, Leo and Calypso had their first godly child, a girl they named Esperanza, after Leo's mother. She had her mother's caramel hair and pale skin, but Leo could tell she was going to grow up to be an expert craftsman by the way she looked at everything like it was a challenge, like she knew that she could change it to make it better, just like Leo had done when he was a kid.

Even after all that time, Leo still wasn't sure if becoming a god was the right decision, but by becoming a god, he would be able to stay with those he loved forever, and that's what mattered most.

 **THE END**


End file.
